1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a driver unit for use in a window regulator of an automobile.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Window regulators or window-winding mechanisms for use in automobiles include a link mechanism or wire mounted in a door and coupled to a bracket fixed to a panel of window glass attached to an automobile door. When raising or lowering the window glass, the link mechanism or wire is moved by a motor-driven or manually-operated driver unit to impart vertical movement to the bracket. The window regulator employing the wire for lifting and lowering the window glass is disclosed in, e.g., Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 58-69684.
Some automobile doors have window frames or sashes in which window glass panels are movably supported. When the window glass is fully closed in a sash, the upper, front and rear edges of the glass are held in position by the sash. When the glass is moved upwardly or downwardly, its front and rear edges are supported by the sash in the longitudinal and transverse directions of the automobile.
Since the front sash member of a front door is inclined along the front pillar of the automobile body, the front edge of the front window glass supported and guided by the sash is of a reduced length. The front window glass is prevented from rotating in a plane along its surface by means of a slider secured to a lower portion of the window glass and slidably supported in the groove of a rail attached to an inner panel of the front door.
If the aforesaid construction were incorporated in a sashless door, the rigidity with which the glass is supported would be insufficient because the supported length of the slider would be too small. This would lead to certain drawbacks, namely that the upper and side edges of the glass could not be completely sealed against the automobile body, resulting in leakage of rain water and whistling caused by wind. In doors with larger window glass areas for a wider field of view, the belt line would be lowered and hence the vertical width of the slider guided by the rail would be reduced. The glass therefore would not be supported completely. In some automobile types, the configuration of the window glass does not match the guide rail.